“Are you sure you’ve thought this through?”
The day after their trip to the amusement park, Lu Cheng dialed the number on the card Guo Zhang had given him. The meeting was set at a coffee shop, where he found himself face-to-face with Shengnan Liu, who had briefly crossed paths with him before.
Today, she was dressed casually, in a striped black track jacket over a white t-shirt, and jeans. Standing about six-foot-one, her hair pulled back into a ponytail, Shengnan’s fit, lean physique made quite an impression. Feeling slightly awkward, Lu Cheng looked away and coughed. “If I join the Combat Division, is there anything else I should prepare for?”
Shengnan gave a light smile and explained, “Generally speaking, the Association has strict criteria for approval.”
“But the U20 Tournament was essentially a screening process. Of course, you’ll start as an intern and complete a few tasks before becoming an official member.”
Missions? That sounded about right. For an organization of this level, it’d be weird if just anyone could join.
“So these tasks…what exactly are they?”
“Every new Association member is assigned a mentor to guide them and oversee their missions.” She grinned. “And don’t worry—the tasks aren’t meant to be too hard. We need to make sure we’re actually bringing in fresh talent.”
Sensing something unsaid, Lu Cheng asked cautiously, “If I could ask, what was your entry task?”
“Calming down a herd of Kangaskhan in their breeding season.”
“And how did you manage that?”
“With Pokémon battles, of course,” Shengnan replied matter-of-factly. “New recruits aren’t issued firearms.”
A wild herd of Kangaskhan in breeding season, throwing punches and Hyper Beams like they’re going out of style… Lu Cheng felt a bead of cold sweat form on his forehead.
Noticing his concern, Shengnan reassured him, “Don’t worry. My year had a 95% pass rate!” She flashed a broad smile, showing a perfect row of white teeth.
Lu Cheng raised an eyebrow. “And the remaining 5%…”
An awkward silence settled over the table.
“Alas!” Shengnan sighed dramatically and lifted her coffee, adding a solemn air that felt a bit too rehearsed.
What the heck was that sigh about?
Shengnan interlaced her fingers and placed them before her face, striking an iconic pose with a wistful look. “The organization…never forgets its own…”
Lu Cheng nearly spilled his coffee.
“Hahaha!” Shengnan laughed out loud, her shoulders shaking as she relished his reaction.
“Just kidding! The Association would rather protect our people, not put them in danger,” she said with a grin. “However…” Her tone shifted, serious now. “Lu Cheng, you need to be prepared—when the time comes, death isn’t just a joke.”
Seeing Shengnan’s serious expression, Lu Cheng nodded.
“Well then, I’ll confirm your information,” Shengnan said, waving a hand dismissively. “Your mentor will be that guy in the sunglasses you met before. He’ll assign your tasks.”
Thinking of Guo Zhang and his scarred face, Lu Cheng shivered. He raised his hand. “Can I request to switch mentors?”
Shengnan looked puzzled. “Do you even know anyone else in the Association?”
Lu Cheng shook his head.
“I understand your concern.” Shengnan smiled. “But trust me, Boss Guo just looks intimidating.”
“Actually, he’s even more ruthless.”
Lu Cheng: ??
“Not joking,” she added, “Boss Guo’s rank is very high, and having him as a mentor will be great for you. Lots of people would kill for this privilege.”
She stood, adding, “You’ll probably get your evaluation task in about two weeks. Train your Pokémon well in the meantime.”
“Oh, and…” Shengnan paused mid-step, turning back to him, “Don’t slack off on your own training. A trainer’s physical strength matters, too!”
“I’ll send you a training plan in a couple of days. Follow it to the letter every day!”
Her tone was like that of a teacher lecturing a kid, and Lu Cheng, with a grumbling face, nodded. Smiling, she waved goodbye and strode out the door.
—
Two days later, Lu Cheng received the workout plan from Shengnan Liu. It included one hundred squats, one hundred push-ups, and a ten-kilometer run… “If I train like this, I might go bald,” Lu Cheng muttered.
With a sigh, he scrolled to the end of the workout plan and noticed a line in bold:
“The above is a joke! Don’t actually train like this, or you’ll lose all your hair!”
This was followed by a series of mocking “hahahas.”
Lu Cheng shook his head with a dark expression and continued reading. Shengnan had marked the real training plan below. She had customized a detailed regimen that included daily workout amounts and nutritional intake.
What surprised Lu Cheng the most was that the plan listed his exact height, weight, and even body fat percentage—all information he hadn’t shared with Shengnan beforehand.
“Did she pull this from the school’s physical exam records?” Lu Cheng scratched his chin and muttered, “That’s kind of… creepy.”
Grumbling aside, Lu Cheng stuck to the regimen faithfully, completing his exercises daily as planned. Mornings were for cycling to the gym and using free equipment courtesy of Minglang Gao; afternoons, he focused on training his two Pokémon.
Before he knew it, a week had passed, and mid-June had arrived. The weather grew scorching, with the sun beating relentlessly down on the earth. And today, thousands of students were stepping into the same battlefield: the college entrance exams.
“Cheng Cheng, come look! One of your classmates is on TV!” Lu Cheng was in his room doing curls when he heard his mother calling from the living room. He stepped out to see a special broadcast about the college entrance exams.
The past few days had been monotonous, filled with nothing but training, and Lu Cheng had almost forgotten that today was the big day.
On TV, a security guard and a Growlithe maintained order at the school gates while a reporter waited to interview the first student to come out of the exam hall.
“Can you tell us how difficult you found the exam?” the reporter asked.
Lu Cheng blinked, surprised—the first person leaving the hall was Hu Sheng!
Hu Sheng chuckled and said, “Not too bad. I thought it was pretty easy.”
“Except for the last big question, I managed to solve everything.”
“So, you’re confident about this exam?”
“Of course!” Hu Sheng grinned proudly. “Out of a hundred and fifty points, I should be able to score at least one hundred thirty!”
“Is this classmate of yours really that good at his studies?” Lu Cheng’s mom asked in surprise.
Lu Cheng’s face took on a peculiar expression as he tried to hold back a laugh.
“Ahem, yeah! Something like that,” Lu Cheng nodded.
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